HUNDREDS of cosmetic procedures are being carried out under the medical card scheme including breast enlargements, nose and chin adjustments and facelifts.

Figures obtained by the Sunday Tribune reveal that between 2005 and 2009 there were 402 augmentation mammoplastys or breast enlargement procedures, an average of 80 a year.

There were 795 reduction procedures, or an average of 159 per year.

A breakdown of operations shows an additional 184 procedures were carried out involving "application, insertion or removal" procedures on breasts.

There were 141 face lifts or brow lifts, 522 nose jobs, 419 liposuction and lipectomy procedures and 241 operations to tackle morbid obesity.

The Health Service Executive (HSE) said that while medical cards are used for such procedures, it is only done after medical consultants advise it in the interests of the patient's health, often in conjunction with a psychologist.

While breast augmentation or enlargements and breast reduction procedures take place at a cost to the taxpayer, these are only done when medically necessary and not in the context of cosmetic enhancement.

In the past five years, procedures also include 238 eyelid excisions and a minor number of chin surgeries or genioplasties.

In the same period, doctors carried out 1,245 procedures to repair damaged ears, a common result of assaults.

In all, between 2005 and 2009, there were over 4,200 cosmetic procedures green-lighted by medical professionals in the interests of patient wellbeing, many of which would have been funded by the health service.

"If a consultant decides that corrective surgery is required, that would be carried out in the medical card scheme," a spokesman for the HSE said.

Aside from operations like breast augmentation or liposuction, many of the procedures are essential in the aftermath of accidents where patients are left with disfiguring injuries. In some cases, psychologists will consult with doctors and a decision can be made that certain procedures should be provided for in the interest of their health.